Narrative Approaches in Criminological Research

Narrative approaches in criminological research foreground the stories that individuals, communities and institutions construct about crime, justice and social order. Drawing on traditions in literary studies, sociology and psychology, this field examines how personal testimonies, life histories and cultural texts shape understandings of offending, victimisation and policy responses. Methodologically, scholars employ in‐depth and repeat qualitative interviews, biographical mapping and discourse analysis to capture the temporal flow and subjective meanings of criminal experience. Theoretical work has expanded to consider environmental harms, pandemic‐induced shifts and the interplay between structural forces and individual agency. By attending to narrative form and content, researchers reveal how myths of desistance circulate, how legitimacy is negotiated through storytelling and how omissions in life stories may carry profound social significance. Applications span rehabilitative practice, restorative justice programmes and crime prevention, as well as informing legislative debate and community interventions. Globally, narrative criminology has illuminated varied phenomena—from border narratives in migration contexts to the allegorical use of fables in green cultural critiques—highlighting its versatility in addressing both traditional and emergent harms.

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Narrative Approaches in Criminological Research publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in narrative approaches in criminological research across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Narrative criminology: An approach that studies how stories and storytelling practices influence perceptions and experiences of crime and justice.

Biographical narrative: A personal life story or testimony used to explore individual experiences of offending, victimisation or institutional processes.

Repeat interviewing: A qualitative method involving multiple interview sessions with the same participant to build rapport and generate more nuanced data.

Criminogenic narrative: A storyline or discourse that contributes to the emergence or justification of criminal behaviour within a community or culture.

Narrative normalisation: A process by which violent or harmful actions are rendered ordinary and acceptable through prevalent storytelling conventions.

References

1. “This is My Story”: Why People in Prison Participate in Qualitative Research. International Journal of Qualitative Methods (2023).
2. On Narrative and Green Cultural Criminology. International Journal for Crime Justice and Social Democracy (2017).
3. The Fable of The Three Little Pigs: Climate Change and Green Cultural Criminology. International Journal for Crime Justice and Social Democracy (2019).
4. Corona crimes: How pandemic narratives change criminal landscapes. Theoretical Criminology (2020).
5. Trust, nuance, and care: Advantages and challenges of repeat qualitative interviews. Qualitative Research (2024).
6. ‘Violence is completely normal’: Managing Violence Through Narrative Normalization. The British Journal of Criminology (2024).
7. What is left unsaid: Omissions in biographical narratives. Current Sociology (2023).